THE ROLE OF PHARMACOGENOMICS IN OPTIMIZING DRUG THERAPY

Abstract

In recent years, the clearance procedure for new medications has slowed significantly.  novel approaches to drug research are required in order to expedite the development of novel medications.  While pharmacogenomics examines how many gene variants work together to determine a patient's reaction to medication treatment, pharmacogenetics studies genetic determinants underlying interindividual variability in drug response. As a result, these techniques can be applied in the drug development process to pinpoint patient subgroups that have enhanced response and/or benefit/risk ratio following therapy.  The authors give examples of how pharmacogenetics and pharmacogenomics are used in the development of lung, cardiovascular, cancer, and bone diseases, as well as illustrate the possible economic benefits of their development.